The Kill Order

Thirteen years earlier, a man named Mark wakes in a dormitory, instantly aware of the snoring of the man beside him. He tosses a shoe at the man and wakes him. The man, Alec, makes a half-hearted threat, telling Mark he was once a soldier. Mark dresses and heads out in search of his friend, Trina. As he walks through the small settlement, he notes the scrawniness of the people and the orange hue in the sky, both reminders of the solar flares that came without warning a year ago. He finds Trina reading a book as she leans against a boulder.

Trina and Mark head back to the settlement, where they are expected to join Alec and his former coworker, Lana, in search of a place to build a branch location for the overcrowded settlement. As Mark and Trina settle down to breakfast, their other friends, Darnell, Toad, and Misty, join them. Darnell makes everyone laugh by wearing Toad’s dirty underwear on his head.

The sound of an airship draws everyone outside. Electronics have been useless since the solar flares, but there is a budding new government in Alaska calling itself Post-Flare Coalition (PFC) that is using a few Bergs to drop supplies on some of the settlements. This Berg does not have markings on it, but hope surges through the settlement, as some suggest it has come to offer help. However, this Berg hovers, and two men appear with long, dark tubes. They shoot darts at the people, causing panic as people begin running for shelter.

Darnell is hit with a dart, and Mark and Lana drag him along as they rush toward the Central Shack amidst the chaos. Trina, Toad, and Misty join them. They hide behind a building, confused and unsure what to do. Alec appears in the doorway of the Central Shack with two rifles that have grappling hooks attached to them. Relieved that Alec has a plan, Mark picks up a large piece of wood to shield him from the darts and runs across the clearing to join Alec.

Alec gives Mark a pistol and tells him to provide cover. As Mark shoots at the opening on the Berg, Alec shoots the grappling hook so that it wraps around the hydraulics. Alec takes the pistol from Mark and pulls himself up. Alec yells for Mark to use the other hook to join him. Mark does not know how to use the contraption but manages to fire the hook. Alec grabs the grappling hook and wraps it around the hydraulics, yelling more instructions as the Berg rises. Mark is yanked up and slammed into some trees as the Berg tries to gain altitude.

Mark eventually finds the green button that will pull him onto the ship, and he barely slides inside as the hatch closes. The Berg looks deserted, but there is light coming from behind a closed door. Mark gives Alec a sledgehammer, which he uses to beat on the door. Mark looks for weapons and finds a box that has a label that concerns him. It says the contents are 24 darts that contain a “highly contagious” (35) virus.

Mark finds a heavy wrench to use as a weapon as Alec breaks through the door. They run through a corridor and find the cockpit with two people inside. Alec begins to fight with the man while the pilot, a woman, continues to fly the Berg. When Alec gains dominance over the man, he demands to know what is happening. The man refuses to answer. Mark demands the pilot land the Berg, but she also refuses, insisting in a flat voice she is only following orders. The soldier orders the pilot to take the ship down. With a push of one lever, the Berg drops quickly out of the air, causing Mark to be thrown forward and a heavy object to hit him on the head. He loses consciousness.

In his unconscious state, Mark remembers riding the subway train with Trina on the day the solar flares hit; it was the last day of school before a two-week break. Mark wants to tell Trina he has a crush on her but is content with planning to spend the majority of their break together. Mark and Trina live next door to each other and have been friends since childhood. She has grown into a beautiful young woman, and this has not only drawn Mark’s attention, but that of most of the other boys at school, too. He does not think he has a chance.

The train suddenly stops, and the electricity goes out. People scream, emergency lights come on, and a couple of men pry open the doors. Everyone goes out, leaving Mark and Trina alone. They consider staying but decide they would feel better doing something productive. Mark and Trina walk in the direction opposite of where the others are running and run into groups of people who are badly burned. They turn back and run in the direction from which they came.

When Alec wakes Mark, they are outside of the crashed Berg. Alec has investigated the wreckage and determined the ship is no longer airworthy. He assures Mark that the darts are still intact, so they likely have not exposed themselves to the virus, but they are both unclear if that is enough to keep them safe. They search the Berg again, and Mark finds a workpad, a small tablet-like computer. They take it back to the clearing, and Alec looks through it, finding a map that shows the Berg continuously returns to the same destination about 50 or 60 miles away. He surmises that this is their headquarters. Alec announces they will go there to find out why they were attacked. But first he wants to return to their settlement to check on their friends. It takes them two days, but they make it to the settlement.

As they approach the settlement, they can smell death. Alec warns Mark to be cautious of any living people, assume they are infected, and not get too close. At first, they find dead bodies stacked up neatly. Alec calls out, and someone answers, telling them everyone has been isolated in their homes to avoid getting sick. Trina suddenly comes out into the open to welcome them back but pulls up short of touching them. She leads them to the others, passing a shack that is boarded up from the outside. They can hear screaming coming from inside.

Trina tells them it is Darnell inside the shack. Mark peeks in as Darnell begins moaning about his head, saying “they” are inside it. Mark tries to offer Darnell words of comfort, calling to him through a gap in the boarded-up window. Darnell does not initially respond. When Darnell turns his head toward Mark, there is blood on his forehead. Mark moves back, and a second later there are pounding sounds on the other side of the door. The noises stop, and Mark surmises Darnell has beat himself to death.

Trina is upset about Darnell and seeks comfort, but they are all cautious about touching each other for fear of spreading the virus. Trina says she does not believe she is sick because the virus worked quickly on those who were shot and almost as fast on those who cared for the sick. However, they agree to keep their distance. They also agree with Alec that they should leave the settlement. They find Misty and Toad together, and Lana by the river. Lana, a former Army nurse, tells them that she believes the ones who are not showing symptoms are probably safe from infection. They all agree to leave the settlement. They go to the Central Shack to gather supplies. Misty suddenly begins to complain of head pain.

Lana orders everyone outside. Toad initially refuses but follows. They wait an hour to see if Misty’s pain gets better. Lana worries that if Misty is infected, it means that the virus works differently in each individual. That makes it more dangerous. Lana suggests they leave Misty behind. Trina argues, but Misty agrees that they should leave her. Alec makes the final decision that they leave Misty, but Toad refuses. Toad decides to stay with Misty as the others leave. Lana tells Toad to find them if he changes his mind.